Kovair Global Lifecycle/Requirements Management provides a rich, configurable, global platform for capturing a common set of requirements, collaborating on their development, and tracing implementation back to specs.  Global Lifecycle/RM ensures that all developers are working from the same playbook, no matter where they are located, and that there are no costly last minute surprises -- whether the project was built in the office next door, or by an offshore partner 10,000 miles and 10 time zones away.  The result is a top-quality application that matches what the user asked for, and which complies with all internal and external requirements.

Product Benefits

Faster time-to-market
Formalizing and automating requirements management and enabling reuse of requirements speeds project completion by 30-50% versus ad hoc or manual processes.

No more redo’s
Having one version of the truth captured and shared globally by all developers means fewer design errors make it through to implementation.  The result is significantly less testing time and almost no reworking of the application after system testing.  Total project labor cost is shaved by 10-20%.

Better team collaboration and communication
A shared single repository enabled through global web-based access to the requirements means no mistakes because distributed teams are working with different specs, and anyone with the appropriate permission can make changes with automatic notifications sent to other team members.

Manage regulatory compliance automatically
Regulations are really just requirements generated externally.  With 100% backwards and forwards traceability, regulatory compliance is automatically ensured if managed through Kovair Global Lifecycle/RM, mitigating a big risk to your business.

Product Features

Kovair Global Lifecycle/RM is an anywhere-anytime requirements capture, management and analysis application. Project goals and deliverables are shared by diverse team members (customers, analysts, software architects and designers) to collaborate on managing requirements around town or around the globe.  Global Lifecycle/RM’s rich implementation of requirements capture, traceability, incremental baseline and intelligent reporting in a process-driven tool enables project teams to effectively manage and map requirements through to detailed system features. It includes:

Powerful Process Automation
Automate workflow the way it happens in your organization by creating Step-based or more complex Task-based processes.  Rather than fighting with the way the tool works, have it increase your productivity even more by embedding your custom processes, making them the standard, and reusing them across projects.  Simplify task management across time zones by replacing manual task assignment with automatic handoff – when the developer in Bangalore is finished coding, the right tester in Dublin is automatically notified and assigned the next step. Create and synchronize processes at multiple levels to address the entire lifecycle: Project, Release, Module, Requirement, Issues. Supports any methodology or process (RUP, Agile, Scrum, CMMI).  If your development is distributed globally, you need this capability.

100% Web-based
Kovair Global Lifecycle/RM was designed from the ground up as a web-based application optimized for project work that is distributed between buildings on your campus, or at sites around the world.  All functionality, even Admin and configuration processes, is supported over the web.  Enables telecommuters to work more effectively, management and control of offshore projects, and better collaboration with service partners.

Kovair Global Lifecycle Process Designer

Shared Requirements Repository
A single version of the truth ensures all developers have the same information and that it is current and accurate.  A critical component of a collaborative environment.

Context-based Communication Capabilities 
Context-based threaded discussions (linked to requirements), automatic event notification and document management enable quick resolution to problems and awareness of important changes for superior communication and collaboration.

Customizable User Interface
Create or customize unique Forms and Views for different groups (Business Analysts, Use Case Engineers, Software Architects & Designers) for requirements entry, maximizing task-oriented usability. Usability is enhanced in a distributed environment, as groups in other regions or countries may need to see different information to do their job.

Task Management 
Manage, assign and approve requirements-related tasks (such as review, assign to release) to team members manually, or have tasks automatically generated using the process engine.

Traceability and Impact Analysis
Create logical links (depending, affecting, bi-directional) between requirements (or issues) and view in a global matrix. Impact of changes is forwarded to stakeholders automatically to ensure synchronization and that problems are addressed early to minimize cost of changes at end of lifecycle.

Baseline, Change & Release Management
Freeze requirements incrementally (e.g., by type), baseline them, clone them and create a product roadmap with different releases.  Create a change control board to review and modify requirements after obtaining the appropriate approvals.

Policy Enforcement
Ensure compliance with business policy.  For example, create a rule which stipulates all functional requirements have a test case associated with them, or create a task and notify the correct person to act on it.

Administration & Security
Security privileges can be set at extremely granular levels for both users and groups. Includes support for LDAP, SSL encryption and SMTP/MAPI.

Word and Excel Integration
Upload requirements from existing Word or Excel documents, with support for column mapping from Excel or CSV files to automatically import structured data, or use Global Lifecycle/RM’s embedded rich text editor to create business requirements, use cases, functional and any other type of requirement.

Reporting
Use Global Lifecycle/RM’s standard reports (SRS, MRD, Trend Analysis, 2/3-D charts) or create your own with SpeedWord Reports, a BI tool that enables creation and formatting of reports in Microsoft® Word. Other report types supported include:

1. HTML, enabling direct printing from the Object list page
2. Export any lists to Excel for additional formatting and manipulation
3. Built-in Crystal Report offers easy way to do custom formatting, or create your own reports from scratch
4. Word Reporting enables fully customizable formatting with multi-level data elements from Kovair Global Lifecycle

Personalized Time Zone and Date/ Time Formatting
Specify a personal Time Zone and Date/ Time format, and wherever a date or time field appears it is automatically translated to your display preference, eliminating confusion over whether the project deadline is December 11, or November 12.

What-if Analysis
Kovair Global Lifecycle/RM includes a powerful Decision Support System which facilitates better planning using what-if-analysis. For example, to plan a Release, a large number of Requirements are ranked collaboratively, and then different constraints are set in the tool, such as availability of resource types, schedule etc. Requirements are then distributed into a number of release buckets, either automatically, or reassigned manually using drag-and-drop until you reach an optimal result.

Electronic Signature
Processes requiring formal approvals to meet Compliance or Governance guidelines are supported by Kovair’s Electronic Signature capability in custom forms. Coupling the Process Engine with Electronic Signature enables strict enforcement of any approval process with minimum overhead.